Tag: FEMA

FCT Emergency Management Agency on Friday assured residents of the territory that there was no likelihood of earthquake within the territory and the country, after the earth tremors in Mpape and its environs on Thursday.

Residents in the Federal Capital Territory were alarmed by the sudden shake of the earth in the affected areas.

The Director-General of the agency, Mr Abass Idris, in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria, on Friday, said there was no cause for alarm.

According to him, the tremor around Mpape and some parts of Maitama district does not imply that the FCT and indeed the country is under the threat of an earthquake, saying that the agency is in firm control of the situation.

“We are urging all residents to calm down and be rest assured that the abnormal situation would soon stop.”

According to him, the possible cause of the incident may be due to an earth tumour which he explained, is a “sign of seismic movement within the earth that was caused by a sudden break along a fault line.

“This sudden release of energy makes the ground to shake which may be caused by stress in underground rocks and may be due to rock blasting and mining activities in the area.”

The DG appealed to the residents of the affected area to remain calm as the agency was doing all within its powers to bring the situation under control within the shortest time.

A resident in Maitama, Mr Victor Okoye who experienced the tremor, told NAN that he initially thought it was a blast from one of the quarry sites in Mpape.

“When I came outside my house, I discovered it was indeed shaking and a lot of things began to run through my mind as I thought the end of the world was here.”

Another resident of Mpape, Mrs Alice Adetola, expressed shock over the incident, adding that the experience terrified her children.

“ I held on to my children and began to pray to God for mercy. I even began to think towards relocating if we make it through the night.”

Also, Mr John Eson said the prompt response of FEMA to the area had assured residents that the situation was under control.

A man helps children across a flooded street as they evacuate their home after the area was inundated with flooding from Hurricane Harvey.

The US House of Representatives Wednesday approved in a nearly unanimous vote a $7.85-bn package of emergency aid for victims of Hurricane Harvey, in a rare show of unity by the bitterly divided chamber.

Lawmakers in the lower house of Congress voted by 419 to three in favour of releasing the funds, which will mostly be channelled to the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The Senate is due to hold its own vote in coming days.

The funds will “allow FEMA to continue response and recovery efforts, including life-saving missions, while also ensuring the agency has resources available should another emergency arise,” said Republican Rodney Frelinghuysen, head of the House Appropriations Committee.

“In the wake of this disaster, our nation has come together,” said House Majority leader Kevin McCarthy.

“We are with you and we will be with you until we are even stronger than before,” he added, addressing Texas flood victims.

The “no” votes were from conservative Republicans who wanted to see the expense offset with other budget cuts.

The funds, however, are only a down payment on the total cost of the disaster, which experts say could surpass $150bn.

The US Senate will vote on the measure in the next days and may link the aid to increase the ceiling on the national debt.